This Heart Of Mine

Molly's heart stopped. Lilies of the Field wasn't on the Common. Her pink, blue, and yellow nursery cottage would be torn down. She abandoned the toiletry baskets. 'You can't tear those cottages down! They're historic! They're-'

'The fishing's real good around here,' Kevin cut in, shooting her a frown. 'Large- and smallmouth bass, perch, bluegill. I heard a guy in town talk about a seven-pound pike he pulled out of the lake last week.'

Eddie patted his stomach and belched. 'I can't wait to get out on that boat.'

'This lake is too small for what you want,' Molly said desperately. 'There's a strict limit to how big an outboard motor you can use. You can't even water-ski.'

Kevin shot her a pointed look. 'I don't think Eddie plans to cater to the water-skiing crowd.'

'Nah. Just fishermen. Roll out of bed in the morning, give everybody a coffee thermos, a bag of doughnuts, and some beer, then send 'em out on the lake while the mist is still on the water. Come back after a coupla hours for brats and beer, take a nap, play some pool…'

'I think we should put the pool table out there.' Larry pointed toward the front of the house. 'Along with a big-screen TV. Once we tear down all the walls between the rooms, everything will be together-the pool table, TV, the bar, and the bait shop.'

'Bait shop! You're putting a bait shop in this house!'

'Molly.' Kevin's voice sounded a warning note, and Eddie tossed him a pitying look. Kevin narrowed his eyes at her. 'Maybe you'd better go check on Amy.'

Ignoring him, she zeroed in on Eddie. 'People have been coming here for years. The campground needs to stay the way it is, and the bed-and-breakfast, too. The house is filled with antiques, and it's in wonderful condition. It even runs at a profit.' Not much of one, but at least it paid for itself.

Eddie gave an open-mouthed laugh that revealed too much of his salami sandwich. He jabbed his brother. 'Hey, Larry, you want to run a bread-and-breakfast?'

'Yeah, sure.' Larry snorted and reached for his beer. 'As long as I can have a pool table, satellite TV, and no women.'

'Molly… out. Right now.' Kevin jerked his head toward the door.

Eddie chuckled as the little woman was finally put in her place.

Molly clenched her teeth, then drew her lips into a stiff smile. 'I'm leaving, darling. Just make sure you clean up after your friends. And last time you washed dishes, you splashed-so don't forget to wear your apron.'

Now that was pussy-whipping!

After dinner Molly pleaded an upset stomach to the munchkins and told them they'd have to sleep in their own cottage. Since it was their last night here, she felt guilty, but she didn't have any choice. She changed into jeans, turned out the lights, and curled up in the chair by the open window. Then she waited.

She didn't worry about Kevin dropping in. He'd gone to town with the Dillards, where, if there was any justice, he'd get drunk and end up with a world-class hangover. Also they hadn't spoken all afternoon.

During tea she could see right away that he was angry with her, but she didn't care because she was angry right back. You duh man… You duh big dumb jerk! Selling the campground was bad enough, but selling it to somebody who intended to destroy it was unconscionable, and she'd never forgive herself if she didn't at least try to put a stop to it.

Lilies of the Field was too isolated for her to be able to see the men when they returned from town, but the campground was quiet enough that she knew she'd hear them. Sure enough, a little after one in the morning the sound of a car engine drifted through the window. As she straightened in the chair, she wished there weren't so many loopholes in her plan, but it was the best she had.

She pulled on her sneakers, grabbed the flashlight she'd swiped from the house, and left Roo behind so she could set to work. Forty-five minutes later she let herself inside Lamb of God, where Eddie and Larry were spending the night. She'd checked it out earlier, right after the men had left for town, to see which bedroom was Eddie's. Now it smelled like stale liquor.

Moving closer, she gazed down at the big, dumb, drunken lump under the covers. 'Eddie?'

The lump didn't move.

'Eddie,' she whispered again, hoping she didn't wake up Larry, too, since it would be easier dealing with only one of them. 'Eddie, wake up.'

Fumes came off him as he stirred. Someone this gross shouldn't be allowed in Nightingale Woods. 'Yeah… yeah?' He wedged open his eyes. 'Whatzu…'

'It's Molly,' she whispered. 'Kevin's estranged wife. I need to talk to you.'

'Whadya… whatzabout?'

'About the fishing camp. It's very important.'

He started to lever himself up, then fell back into the pillow.

'I wouldn't bother you if it weren't important. I'll just step outside while you put some clothes on. Oh, and you don't need to wake Larry.'

'Do we hafta talk now?'

'I'm afraid so. Unless you want to make a terrible mistake.' She hurried from the room, hoping he'd get up.

A few minutes later he stumbled out the front door. She put her fingers to her lips and gestured for him to follow. Sweeping her flashlight across the ground, she cut across the edge of the Common, then headed back toward Lilies of the Field. Before she got there, however, she turned into the woods and headed toward the lake.

The wind had picked up. She felt a storm brewing and hoped it didn't hit until she was done with this. He loomed next to her, a big, hulking shape.

'What's going on?'

'There's something you need to see.'

'Couldn't I see it in the morning?'

'That'll be too late.'

He swiped at a branch. 'Shit. Does Kev know about this?'

'Kev doesn't want to know.'

He stopped walking. 'What do you mean by that?'

She kept her flashlight pointed at the ground. 'I mean that he's not deliberately deceiving you. He's just ignored some things.'

'Deceiving me? What the hell're you talking about?'

'I know you thought I was being silly today at lunch, but I was hoping you'd listen to me. Then we could have avoided this.' She started walking again.

'Avoided what? You'd better tell me what's going on here, lady.'

'I'll show you instead.'

Eddie stumbled a few more times before they finally reached the water. The trees whipped in the wind, and she braced herself. 'I hate being the one who has to show you this, but there's a… problem with the lake.'

'What kind of problem?'

She slowly swept the flashlight beam along the edge of the water, just where it lapped the shore, until she found what she was looking for.

Dead fish floating in the water.

'What the hell…?'

She played the light over the silver bellies of the fish before turning the beam back onto the bank. 'Eddie, I'm so sorry. I know you have your heart set on a fishing camp, but the fish in this lake are dying.'

'Dying?'

'We have an environmental disaster going on. Toxins are leaking into the water from a secret underground chemical dump. It'll cost millions to fix the problem, and the town doesn't have the money. Since the local economy depends on tourists, there's a big cover-up going on, and no one will publicly admit there's a problem.'

'Fuck.' He grabbed the flashlight and shone it back on the floating fish. Then he snapped it off. 'I can't believe Kev would do this to me!'

This was the most glaring loophole in her plan, and she tried to overcome it with dramatic presentation. 'He's in denial, Eddie. Terrible, terrible denial. This was his childhood home, his last link with his parents, and he simply